Machine for beating rugs, carpets, or the like



June 1, 1948. E. R. WlTT MACHINE FOR BEATING RUGS, CARPETS, OR THE LIKE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 15, 1944 June 1, 1948. E. R. WlTT 2,442,524

MACHINE FOR BEATING HUGS, CARPETS, OR THE LIKE Filed Sept. 15, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented June 1, 1948 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE MACHINE FUR BEATING RUGSCARPETS,

OR THE Edward R. Witt, Evanston, Ill.

Application September 15, 1944, Serial No. 554,294

2 Claims. 1

This invention relates to a machine for heating rugs, carpets, or the like to remove the dust therefrom.

An object of the invention is to provide a machine into which a rug may be fed and-which will operate to eiiiciently remove the dust from the rug. It is desired to provide such a machine which will collect the dust removed from the rug and not scatter it about the vicinity of the machine.

A further object is to provide a rug beating machine which is efficient in removing" the dust from a rug, but which at the same time will not injure or unduly wear the rug.

A more specific object is to provide a machine having a resilient r011 surface over which. a rug may be passed for cleaning and a beating mechanism which has flexible resilient blades for contacting the rug and beating the rug against the resilient roll surface.

Further specific objects and advantages of the machine will be apparent after the following detailed description.

An embodiment of the invention is illustrated by the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a plan view of the machine with a part of the top broken away to show the con struction of the beating mechanism; Fig. 2 is an elevational sectional View, the view being taken as seen from line 22 of Fig. 1; and Fig. 3 is a broken enlarged detail View of the resilient roll with a part of the fabric coating being broken away to expose the resilient rod construction.

As illustrated, the improved machine includes a casing A, a rug roll B over which the rug may be passed for cleaning, and the beating mechanism C within the casing.

The casing A may be of any suitable specific construction. In the embodiment illustrated, it comprises the front wall Ill, the rear wall H, the side walls [2 and I3, and the top [4. The rear wall H is equipped with the doors I5 and I6 through which access may be had to the interior of the casing. The vertical frame members l-l reinforce the casing at the corners thereof. At the bottom of the casing are the fabric sheets l8 and [9 which arev attached to the four vertical walls at their edges and which extend downwardly at their centers to provide a kind of ba LIKE 2 for catching dust'particles falling within the casing.

A fan 20 is mounted in wall l2 near the bottom but above the fabrics l8 and IS. This fan when in operation is adapted to discharge air from the casing and through the bag Zl to the atmosphere. The bag 2! prevents discharge of dust particles along with the air expelled from the casing.

Thefront wall H! of the casing has its top terminating in the edge 22, and depending from the top M is a sheet of fabric 23. The sheet 23 extends downwardly and forwardly from the top and terminates at the brush 24. Brush 24 extends laterally of the machine and is adapted to contact the whole width of the rug passing through the machine. This brush is supported in the framework of the casing by the forwardlyextending brackets 25. The sheet 23 may be con sidered a part of the casing, and the casing then has sin/opening extending from one side to the other and from the brush 24 at the forward or top edge to the lip 22 at the bottom edge. The rug to be cleaned is passed across this opening by a roll which will now be described in detail.

The roll B has a central shaft 25 which is journaled at its ends in the frame members 21 and 28 secured to the casing framework. As more clear-1y shown in Figs. 2 and 3 of the drawings, the roll includes a pair of end members 29 and 39 which at their centers are secured to the shaft 26 and which have circular peripheries, each bein equipped with the inturned flanges 3i.

Extending between the peripheral flanges 3! of the end members 29 and 3e are the flexible rods 32. The rods 32 are preferably equally spaced about the roll and constructed to permit their being flexed when subjected to pressure normal to the surface or the roll. However, though these rods be of such metal and surfici'ently thin to permit flexing, they could not be flexed if their ends were rigidly fastened to the end members 29 and 39. To enable the flexing of these rods, a special spring structure is provided. At one end member, the ears 33 are s cured on the inside 0! the flange 3! on member 29, and one end of each of rods 3| is connected with an ear 33 by means of a coil spring 34. The other end of each rod 3! is secured by means-cf the ears 35 to the other end member 30.

Over the rods 32 and forming the exterior surface of the roll is the fabric coating 36 which may, if desired, be simply a section of rug or carpet. This covering protects the rug or carpet passing over the roll B in the process of being cleaned, and also presents a uniform cylindrical surface which is backed by the flexible rod structure.

By reference to Fig. 2, it will be seen that roll B is mounted so that a portion of its cylindrical surface is included within the opening between the brush 24 and the lip 22, and that. so mounted, a rug passing over it has its surface presented to the interior of the casing between the brush 24 and the lip 22.

The frame members 31 and 38 extend forwardly of the casing and provide supports for the mountings 39 and 4! for the rolls 4! and 42. Roll 42 may have the rug or carpet rolled thereon at the beginning of the cleaning operation, and the rug unrolled from this shaft onto and over the roll B, from which it may pass downwardly and be rolled on the roll 4 l The handle 42 is provided for operating roll 42, and handle -33 is provided for operating roll 4|. If desired, the table members 43 and 44, may be supported on suitable legs 45 below the rolls 4| and 42 as a convenience in handling the rugs being cleaned. A shaft 46 operated by the handle 47 has attached thereto a fabric curtain 48 equipped with a strip 49 at its bottom edge. Turning of the handle 'l operates to roll the curtain about the shaft and so raise the bottom edge.

The beater C includes the shaft 56 which has its one end mounted at 52 on the frame member 21 and its other end mounted at 52 on the frame member 23. The center of the shaft is rotatably supported on the frame member 58 at the center of the casing.

Secured to the shaft 58 are the blades which extend radially from the shaft and are angularly spaced, for example at about 60 so that the second blade from the end is 60 from the end blade, the third 120, the fourth 180, etc. Each of the blades includes a front strip 53 of flexible material, such as rubber or the like, and on the back side of the strip 53 are two resilient supporting members 53' formed from spring steel or like material. The members 53 extend radially along the back surface of the flexible strip I to a point short of the end of the strip. This construction leaves the end of the blade free of the supporting members. Thus, the end of the blades which strike the rug is very flexible and will not harm the rug, while at the same time the blade has the proper support and resiliency in operation.

The heater shaft 50 is driven by the electric motor 54 which is connected to the shaft through the pulleys 55 and 55 and the belt 51.

To operate the improved machine, the operator places the ru to be cleaned on the roll 42 and starts the edge by passing it under the brush 24 and over the roll B, passing the rug edge downwardly forward of the lip 22 and to roll 4!. The mot-or 54 may then be started which starts the rotation of the shaft 50 in a, clockwise direction, as seen from the motor end of the machine. As shaft 56 rotates, the blades strike against the rug on the roll B, the blades striking one after the other. Since in the machine herein described in detail, the blades are 60 apart, the blades strike successively, the next adjacent blade striking later than the prior ones,

until the seventh blade comes up, the seventh blade striking at the same time as the first,

The blades strike the carpet onthe roll B facing the interior of the casing, and as each blade strikes the extreme end flexes so as not to injure the rug. The blow struck by the blade shocks the carpet and may depress it against one or more of the rods 32 on the roll B. The rods 32 are permitted to flex by action of the springs 34.

As the beater rotates and strikes in quick succession at different places along the width of the rug, the operator may operate the handle 43 to wind the rug on the roll 4! and thereby cause successive portions of the rug to pass from the roll 42 over the roll B and onto the roll 4|. Thus successive areas of the rug are beaten by the blades 5|.

. Dust removed from the rug through the beating action passes into the casing and falls down on the fabric [8 where it is caught and may be removed at periodic intervals. The dust is prevented from filtering out at the front of the machine to a large extent by the operation of the fan 20 which passes air from the casing and provides suction.

As the rug passes over the roll B, it is also brushed by the action of the brush 24 which extends the whole width of the machine.

When the rug has about passed over the roll B and the edge comes up to the brush, the operator may cease to turn the handle 43 and pull the rug back over the roll B in a counter direction, finally turning the handle 42a to wind the rug back on the roll 42. In this way, the rug may be quickly and thoroughly freed of dust while avoiding any injury to the rug and without the noxious scattering of dust which is ordinarily associated with rug beating.

Although only a single embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described in detail, it is understood that many embodiments may be constructed and there may be many variations and differences in construction but all within the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. A rug beating machine comprising a casing having an opening therein; a roll adjacent said casing and adapted to receive a rug thereover whereby. a section of the rug is disposed across said opening and exposed to the interior of said casing; said roll including a pair of end members having a circular periphery, a plurality of flexible rods, means for connecting the ends of said rods to the peripheries of said end members, said means including spring means for permitting flexing of said rods without changing the distance between said end members; and a beater rotatably mounted within said casing and having blades adapted upon rotation of the beater to strike a rug on said roll at said exposed section to thereby remove dust particles from the rug.

2. A rug beating machine comprising a casing having an opening therein; a roll adjacent said casing including a pair of ends, rods extending between the peripheries of said ends, means for attaching the ends of said rods to said ends, said means including springs adapted to permit flexing of the rods without changing the distance between said ends, and a fabric covering over said rods and providing the outer cylindrical surface of the roll; means for passing a rug over said roll whereby the rug is passed across said opening and exposed to the interior of said cas- REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 87,952 McArthur Mar. 16, 1869 523,533 Leach July 24, 1894 Number Number Name Date Cassanova May 31, 1898 Weisse July 10, 1900 McGrath Feb. 14, 1905 Mueller June 21, 1910 Johnston May 27, 1930 Shepherd Mar. 19, 1940 Smith May 13, 1941 King July 13, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date France 1918 

